Itai??i??s not been real long when the so-called loyal Toon fans were devastated at losing their Number 9, losing their messiah (No, not Ant and Dec !), their captain fantastic, their best player of the season and having seen a reasonable transfer window full of broken promises. Come three months later, fans are boasting about their beloved team having the best defensive record in the top flight and also they are one of two unbeaten teams in the league so far other team being Manchester City.
What else, Newcastle United are placed joint third in the points table along with Chelsea just a point behind the Champions, Manchester United. What more a Toon fan can ask for? I Itai??i??s a bit too early in the season to talk, but these are good omens of things to come. Going back in the logical sequence of occurrences and by the fans irrational thinking it ponders us with a very alarming question – are we really flying high with our performance or is it just an illusion?
Okay first letai??i??s believe it is an illusion. Reasons being ai??i?? to be sitting in this position the team demanded a Number 9(probably not a Judas!), a Captain fantastic (yes, who can be a Caretaker), a player who is always in the news (or in twitter!), a humble owner who listens to his fans and at the same time spills out cash lavishly. Well, unluckily and fairly we do not have any of them. So we are not logically destined to be placed so high on the chart.
Now letai??i??s take into fact what they have got. They had a decent transfer window, offloading moaning high ambitious players like Enrique and some unwanted players too. They brought in freely available ai??i?? Demba Ba, from French champions ai??i?? Yohan Cabaye, young Inter Milan wing backai??i??David Santon, hijacked Sylvian Marveaux before he could sign for Liverpool, some kids from here and there for free and a French revolution was revisited.
Probably they spent just over a quarter of Carrollai??i??s record fee. What a piece of business! They missed out on a so-called Number 9 striker but the blame should go to the scouting team for being lazy at times or being too cautious enough with the transfer policy. But at the end of the day lets all look at how with a decent set of pawns, Alan Pardew, their once hated puppet manager has injected the winning combination in the team. Till now he has been fearless in using the classic 4-4-2 system.
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Their main strikers Ba, Best and Ameobi are having an insatiable appetite to score goals; their midfield has molded a good combination with the energetic presence of Tiote and Cabaye. Cabaye has composedly filled up the void left over by Barton and brought a new dimension to the team. Jonas is in the form of his life.
Captain Colo and Steven Taylor have formed a solid network at the back. Ryan Taylor and Danny Simpson are doing their job well enough at the wingbacks. And how excellent Tim Krul has been in front of the goal. Sylvian Marveaux looks a good steal from Liverpool. He has looked lively whenever he has come on the pitch. Youngsters ai??i?? Sammy, Abied, and Ferguson are raring to get in the big shoes and have shown glimpses of promise. Not to forget their French craftsman Ben Arfa who is slowly gaining his form on the turf after that horrific injury.
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The fighting team spirit in the dressing room is back which was missing during the relegation season. It was evident in the game against Blackburn in the Carling Cup where they encountered their first defeat of the season. The clubs finances looks in better shape when compared to other club ai??i?? thanks to their financial policy. The scouting team is intelligent in bringing the right players into the club. The entertainment and the thunderous vibrant roar of the 52000 Geordies is back at SJP.
Some critics resentfully moan not facing the ai???realai??i?? teams yet. But then again, they have played five of the last seasonai??i??s top ten teams. The resounding fact is that the players, supporters, manager, management staff, everyone related to Newcastle United club deserve to be where they are now. Keeping the same momentum and with fingers crossed, Newcastle might be destined to Europe next season! Who would have thought that when a mid table finish looked modest enough at the start of the season? To square it off, even if it is a dream for the fans, they do not want to wake up from this dream!
Howay The Lads.
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